


Under the Weather

by zorac



Series: Echo Park - an anthology [16]
Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game), Life Is Strange: Before The Storm (Video Game)
Genre: COVID-19, F/F, Polyamory
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-22
Updated: 2020-06-27
Packaged: 2021-03-01 00:08:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 14,705
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23265958
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zorac/pseuds/zorac
Summary: A snapshot of the intertwined lives and loves of a group of young women during a time of global crisis.Set in the current day, so if you're isolating yourself from reading too much about COVID-19 as well as the virus itself (and I'm certainly not going to judge you for that kind of self care,) then be warned that this story will contain references to the ongoing pandemic. I do promise that none of the characters gets critically ill, though.
Relationships: Alyssa Anderson/Kate Marsh, Dana Ward/Juliet Watson, Maxine "Max" Caulfield/Chloe Price, Rachel Amber/Chloe Price, Steph Gingrich/Brooke Scott, Victoria Chase/Taylor Christensen
Series: Echo Park - an anthology [16]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/658562
Comments: 28
Kudos: 22





	1. Alyssa & Kate

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, after a long delay, here's the last entry in my _Echo Park_ anthology. An unfinished story with this title was one of the first things I started to write when I got into LiS fanfic; I had the beginning, and the idea for an (extremely downbeat) ending, but I never did figure out a middle.
> 
> And then... well, this particular song title seems rather apropos to current events, and a few plot bunnies came hopping along. The plan is to give each chapter a different narrator, and focus on a different ship, but the (present day) parts of each will follow on in sequence.

###### Alyssa

The first thing I learned from my predecessor as the Administrative Assistant to the Boulder Writers’ Retreat, was that day one of each workshop was always complete chaos. But, it was my sixth time – and my fourth flying solo – so I had a pretty decent handle on things. So much so, that I clearly hadn’t read the names of the attendees very thoroughly, because I was caught off guard by a familiar voice.

“Alyssa? Is that really you?”

I looked up, to see a blonde woman smiling down at me. Even though she was dressed conservatively, she was well below the median age of the attendees. It took me a moment to put a name to her face.

“Kate? Kate Marsh?”

I got up from behind the registration table to hug her, but she beat me to it. I remembered that Kate always gave good hugs, but there was something different about that one; something different about her. Something that told me she’d been giving more than just platonic hugs since I last saw her.

“It’s _so_ good to see you again,” Kate said. “It’s been, what, four and a half years?”

“Yeah, it’s been about that long since we escaped Blackwell.”

“Escaped? Seems a little harsh. Other than the first few weeks, I actually look back on those two years rather fondly.”

I was about to say more, but we were interrupted by a subtle cough from behind Kate.

“Dude, seriously?” I said to the guy. “Not cool.” He had the good grace to look abashed at his method of intrusion. “Sorry, I need to get back to work…”

“Of course,” Kate said, “I’m sure we’ll have plenty of opportunities to catch up over the next four weeks.”

The best thing about my job was that I got to sit in on any of the sessions I wanted to; obviously some of them were the same for each group of students, but the guest lecturers were different every time. The downside was that I was kept busy in between, so it wasn’t until an informal evening gathering a couple of days later that I got the chance to talk to Kate properly.

“Sorry I dropped out of touch,” was the first thing Kate said when she came over to me.

“Hey, no problem. I get why you steer clear of social media, and after we started college we were both too busy making new friends to stay in contact with everyone from high school.” I gestured to the bottle of wine she was holding. “So, you drink now?”

“Yes, sometimes. Once I was at college, and found a group of people I felt safe with. At Blackwell… the bad associations were never far enough away. Plus, It probably took until then for all that counseling I had to sink in properly. You want some of this?”

“Please. It’s been a long couple of days.” Kate poured us each a generous glass, then we snagged the ratty old couch in the corner of the common room.

“So, is this like a full-time job for you?” Kate asked.

“Yeah. I mean, the pay is for shit, and I’ll probably only do it for a year or so, but it’s a great learning opportunity for me. Plus, it gives me time to figure out what I want to do next; I’m not naïve enough to think the odds of me making a living as a full-time writer are great.”

Kate nodded. “I know what you mean. So… you’re hoping to find a line of work that’s not horribly paid, even if it’s uninspiring, and keep writing on the side?” I nodded. “I can relate to that. Did you start here right after you graduated? I remember you got accepted into UC Boulder.”

“That’s pretty much it. Plus, the gig comes with free accommodation on site, so I could move here straight from my dorm room.”

“Well, that would help offset the low pay, I guess, unless rents here are way lower than in Portland.”

“I know, but I feel like I’m in just another dorm room. It would be nice to have a place of my own, even if it cost more than I can really afford.”

“Maybe,” Kate said, “but I’m sharing a house with a bunch of other women, and it’s actually kinda nice to have the company.”

“Difference is, you’re living with a group of friends, I presume.” She nodded. “I’m stuck with a new batch of complete strangers every month. I mean, most of them are good folks, but it’s still not the same. Although… I did get to see R.C. Mills in her nightwear, so there’s that.”

“The author of the _Marisol Mendez_ books?”

“She was guest lecturer for a week, back in November.”

“I am _so_ jealous,” Kate said, excitedly. “I love her books, and she’s such a hero of mine…”

“Plus, she seriously rocks a set of midnight blue silk pajamas,” I said, and my eyes may have glazed over a little at the memory. After a moment, we both laughed.

“So, other than famous authors, are you seeing someone at the moment?” Kate asked.

“Nah. I dated a bunch of people in college, of course, and I even had a semi-serious boyfriend towards the end, but he went back home after graduation, and I guess neither of us was serious enough about it to want to try and do the long distance thing. Since then… well, I’ve hooked up with a few of the students who’ve come through this place, but nothing more than a brief fling.”

Kate must have seen the twinkle in my eye, though, because she dead-panned, “oh, the hardship, Alyssa!”

The relaxed way she teased me made me even more certain that I already knew the answer to the next question I asked. “So, Kate, have _you_ found a boy to rock your world yet?”

She blushed a little, so I was caught completely off-guard when she wrinkled her nose, and answered, “no.”

“Oh.” I said, struggling to fill the sudden, awkward silence. “Still serious about the abstinence thing? I can respect that.” Nevertheless, I’m glad I grew up going to a far more liberal church than Kate did, where admonitions about sex before marriage were acknowledged as outmoded in the modern world.

There was a long pause before Kate replied, “Not exactly. I did have a couple of girlfriends in college.”

For a few moments, my jaw worked, but no sound came out. When I finally managed to speak, it was more of a squeak. “You’re not straight?”

“Not even a little,” she said, but nothing more. She simply watched me, as if knowing I needed a moment to process.

“Why did you never say anything?” I asked at last. It stung little that she hadn’t; we were super close at Blackwell, and Kate was the first person that I came out to.

“Because there wasn’t anything to say. At school, I was so focussed on not being attracted to boys that it never occurred to me that the reason I was doing such a good job of it was that I wasn’t attracted to boys at all. And… well, you know what the church I went to in Arcadia Bay was like.”

I nodded slowly. Once, just once, I went there, because it seemed ridiculous that two best friends were going to two different churches every Sunday. The only thing that stopped me walking out half-way through the sermon was the thought of how embarrassed Kate would be. After that, I tried to get her to go to my church instead, but she shook her head, and told me that it would get back to her mother. She’d barely managed to persuade her parents to let her stay at Blackwell after what happened, and was convinced that if she stepped out of line again, they’d pull her out of school altogether.

“Thankfully, my mother didn’t pre-select a church for me when I went to PSU, so I was free to find one which was rather more moderate and accepting. And… once I was away from my weekly dose of bigotry, I began to discover that there was an insidious little part of my mind that piped up every time I noticed a pretty girl, telling me that I was just admiring her hairstyle, or her clothes, or the way she did her make-up – certainly not that I was actually wondering what it would be like to run my fingers through that hair, or kiss her lips… maybe even to see what was under those clothes.”

“After that, I realized that, since no church obsessed with purity culture would ever accept gay marriage, my sticking with abstinence seemed rather… pointless. I got involved with the LGBTQ community on campus, eventually started dating, and… oh, Alyssa, I’m so glad that I did. I’m so much happier, even though I’m not actually seeing someone right now.”

“I’m glad,” I told her. “You deserve it.” And maybe there was something a little speculative in the way I looked at her.

Over the next couple of weeks, Kate and I hung out whenever we got the chance, but if our interactions started to become mildly flirtatious, I was careful never to push it. Kate was only there for a month, after all, and I cared about her too much as a friend to run the risk of hurting her with a brief affair.

Then, late one evening, there was a knock on my door. This usually happened at least a couple of times a week, when one of the students decided that their problem was too important to wait until morning – and never mind that I was officially off-duty. Sighing, I got up to open the door, but my frown became a smile when I saw Kate, wearing a light robe over her pajamas.

“Hey, I hope I’m not disturbing you.” She shuffled awkwardly.

“Of course not, come on in.” She took a look around the room as I shut the door behind her; presumably taking in that my ‘home’ was no different from her temporary accommodations. “So, what’s up?” I asked.

Kate turned back to me, and I realized that she was standing very close. “I… uh… wanted to…”

“Wanted to what, Kate?” I breathed.

“This,” she said, moving even closer, until her lips were a scant inch from mine. There was a questioning look in her eyes as she looked directly into mine. I answered by closing the last of the distance between us.

It felt really good, but almost at once, I felt guilty; and when the kiss ended, I asked, “are you sure you want to do this, Kate? You’ll be leaving in just a couple of weeks, and…”

“I’m a grown woman, Alyssa,” she said, cutting me off. “I’m done denying myself what I want just because of what other people might think – or because there’s a chance I might get hurt.” She pulled me into another kiss. “I know that once I leave, even if we want to, it could be a long time before we could see each other again – especially with what’s going on in the world right now – but that doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy the time we _do_ have, if that’s what you want too.”

The last of my resistance crumbled. I’d wanted it since our first conversation rekindled the minor crush I had on Kate back at Blackwell, and the time we’d spent together since then had only fanned the flames. Clearly Kate could read it on my face, because she smiled, and pulled me towards the bed.

That’s where we were a week and a half later, relaxing in post-coital bliss, when I told her about the meeting I’d had with my manager just before dinner. “They’re closing this place down after you guys leave. Half the bookings for the next few months have already cancelled, and it’s probably only a matter of time before the rest do.”

Kate propped herself up on one elbow to look at me. I tried very hard to keep my eyes on her face. “That’s not exactly surprising, and closing down would probably be the responsible thing to do anyway, but… what does that mean for you?”

“It means that come Monday, I’m out of a job – and a place to live.”

“Oh, Alyssa, that’s awful! Why can’t they let you stay here, at least for a while?”

“Because that’s when the rent’s due, and if nobody’s here then… I dunno, maybe they think they can cut a deal with the landlord or something. It’s not like they’re going to be able to find anyone else to use it until the pandemic has passed.”

“More likely it will get requisitioned for housing patients,” Kate said, darkly. “What will you do?”

I shrugged. “I guess I’ll have to move back with my parents – assuming they’ll have me. What other choice do I have? Even if I could find some place to rent on such short notice, my savings will barely last me a couple of months.”

Kate bit her lip, deep in thought. “How would you feel about going to Portland?” she asked, at length.

“You want me to move in with you? That’s a little fast, unless you want to be a total lesbian cliché.”

“It doesn’t have to be like that, but there’s a spare room in the house, and it would give you a place to stay, even if it’s just while you figure something else out, or until the crisis is over. Of course, I’m not sure how much a last-minute air fare is going to be. I hadn’t thought about that…”

“Not a problem; I do, at least, have a car.” I grabbed my phone and pulled up Google maps. “Looks like about a nineteen hour drive, so I could do that in a couple of days; three if I go a little more easy on myself.”

“I could split the driving with you,” Kate offered.

“That would be awesome, but you’ve already got a flight.”

“I booked a flexible ticket, just in case things had gotten bad faster, and I needed to head home early. I can get at least a partial refund on the return portion, and put the money towards gas and a motel room.”

I felt like somehow the decision had already been made for me, but it only took a moment to agree that, yes, this was the best plan. “I have a feeling that I couldn’t say no to your offer, even if I wanted to.”

“Good, because… I really like you Alyssa, and I wasn’t ready for this to be over so soon.”

“Neither was I,” I admitted.

“So, how much stuff do you have to pack?” Kate asked, a mischievous look in her eyes. “Will it all fit in your car, or are we going to need to get… a U-Haul?”

Groaning, I gestured around the room. “As you can see, I don’t have much. I think we’ll be fine with just the car.”

We made a start late on the following Saturday morning, as soon as I’d checked out the rest of students, collected my final paycheck, and washed my hands yet one more time. Driving in two hour shifts, with a couple of stops for meals eaten in isolated corners of unusually empty diners, we hit Idaho around ten at night, and stopped in a motel just after crossing the Snake River. Too exhausted for anything else, we curled up in each others’ arms, and slept like the dead.

And that brings us to today. We made an early start this morning, and now we’re parked up on the gravel driveway outside what I can only describe as a _mansion_. One that’s clearly seen better days, to be sure, but still… I get out of the car for a better look; the place is big enough to have at least a dozen bedrooms, and there’s even a small tower. “You live _here?_ ” I ask Kate, a little incredulous.

“Yup,” she says, walking up to the front door, and pulling a key from her purse to unlock it. “Come on in and meet everyone.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's all for now; more chapters coming as and when they're ready, but I'm also working on my two current fics in the _Oxygen_ AU, plus a few other unpublished stories, so what comes next will depend on which plot bunnies are most successful at capturing my attention!


	2. Taylor & Victoria

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, this is arriving sooner than I expected. I'm not going to promise to keep up this pace though! In the meantime, stay safe.

###### Taylor

I’m just putting a tray of cookies in the oven when I hear a car pull up outside. It’s about the time that Kate said she’d be getting here; a day late after she decided to fly rather than drive. Can’t say as I blame her, what with airplanes being flying disease incubators at the best of times. By the time I’ve washed my hands and taken my apron off, I can already hear her key in the door.

“Kaaaate!” I call, as I hurry through to the hall, practically bouncing with excitement. She’s been gone for a month, which is _way_ too long to be without our adorable little camp counselor. I’ve missed our talks, and Kate always has the best advice. I don’t want to dump my shit on her the moment she gets home, though.

I burst into the entrance hall to see her smiling at me; there’s another young woman with her, with purple hair and a familiar face. “Hi, Taylor, I thought that was you.”

I skid to a stop a few yards from her. “It’s so awesome to have you home!” I squint at her. “You’re not carrying the plague, are you?” I ask, with exaggerated concern.

“No; or, at least, neither of us has any symptoms.” I shoot another glance at her companion, who’s giving me a look of half-recognition. “You remember my friend Alyssa?” Kate asks, and it all clicks into place.

“Omigod, of _course!_ Alyssa, sorry, I’m such a ditz.”

“It’s fine, Taylor,” she says, “I didn’t recognize you, either. It’s not like we used to hang out at Blackwell, anyway.” She turns to Kate. “Is there a reason you didn’t mention this?” Alyssa asks.

“It’s more fun this way,” Kate tells her with a grin.

“Am I going to recognize more of your housemates?”

I open my mouth to answer, but Kate catches my eye, and I close it again. “I guess we’ll find out,” she says in a teasing voice. Are they _flirting?_ I’m itching to know more, but that can wait a few minutes.

“Well, you two should wash your hands, and come through to the kitchen; I need to get back to my baking.”

As I head back the way I came, and Kate leads her friend to the small bathroom just off the hall, I hear Alyssa’s disbelieving, “she _bakes?_ ” There are still a few minutes before the current batch of cookies are ready, so I busy myself transferring the first one onto a plate and prepping the third to go in the oven.

When the new arrivals come through, Alyssa sniffs the air. “Those smell _incredible_ ,” she says, and from the way her hand’s twitching I can tell she’s eager to try one.

“Taylor’s chocolate peanut butter cookies are the _best_ ,” Kate tells her, and I beam at the compliment.

“Please, help yourself,” I tell them. Alyssa does just that, and her eyes roll back in her head at the first bite.

Kate laughs, then goes on to explain how she came to be here. “Alyssa was working at the place I had my course, but when the shut it down because of the virus, they kicked her out of her on-site accommodation as well as laying her off. I offered her the use of our spare room, at least until she can figure something else out.”

“Of course, you’re welcome to stay here as long as you want as far as I’m concerned, but… there’s a small problem. I’m currently using the spare bedroom.”

“What?” Kate asks, suddenly concerned. “Has something happened between you and Victoria?” I swear, sometimes it feels like Kate’s more invested in the success of her housemates’ relationships than we are.

“No, nothing like that, it’s just… she started coughing, and now she’s isolating herself to an insane degree. She kicked me out, and has us taking meals to her, but she locks herself in the bathroom while we leave it. I haven’t seen her in person for over a week!” I can feel the tears of anger and frustration welling up.

“Oh, Taylor, I’m so sorry. You want me to talk to her?”

“If you wouldn’t mind. Sometimes it seems like you’re the only person she’ll listen to.”

“Wait,” says Alyssa, “are we talking about Victoria _Chase?_ ”

“Yes. The woman I’ve been in love with since, like, forever – and the woman who owns most of this house. So, be careful what you say next.”

“Woah… sorry, Taylor, I didn’t mean anything by it. I was just surprised, what with her and Kate’s history.”

“And that’s exactly what it is,” says Kate. “History. She was really mean to me for a few weeks, and then after it all blew up in her face, she spent the rest of my two years at Blackwell hiding in shame. We got a fresh start here, and we’ve become really good friends. Please don’t get outraged on my behalf; I had enough of that from Max back in the day.”

“Message received,” Alyssa says, before deftly changing the subject. “And don’t worry about the spare room, I wasn’t planning on sleeping in there anyway.” She shoots a sultry glance at Kate, who gets a dreamy look in her eyes. I guess they’re already past the ‘just flirting’ phase, then.

“Well, even so, you’ll probably want your own space. We can see about decorating one of the empty rooms; then you get to have it more your style, anyway.”

“Are you sure?”

“Of course.” I box up some cookies while I talk. “Vic and I are the only ones who actually share a bedroom, and even then we have the tower suite with our own bathroom, lounge and, of course, a walk-in closet. Even the trio have separate bedrooms in their wing of the house.”

“I think that’s rather essential for those three,” says Kate. Then, before Alyssa can ask the questions she’s clearly itching to, “shall we go talk to Victoria now?”

“If you don’t mind. I’d _really_ like to see her with my own eyes.”

“Of course,” she says. We head back through to the entrance hall, just in time to see Chloe come sliding down the bannister at high speed. No-one – not even Kate – has been able to talk her out of that. She pops off the end and lands smoothly, with a fist held out for Kate to good-naturedly bump.

“Hey, Kate, it’s good to have you back. You gonna go talk some sense into Queen V? She’s been driving poor Taylor here to distraction. Not that I’m complaining about all the sweet treats she’s been baking up, but she deserves some quality time with her girl.” Kate nods as Chloe’s eyes slide over to Alyssa – who beats her to the punch.

“Hi, Blue; long time, no see.”

It takes a moment for recognition to dawn in Chloe’s eyes, then she smoothly slides into a seductive purr. “Well, hello there, Purple. Delightful to see you again.”

“Hands off,” says Kate, trying to look tough, “she’s mine.” There’s a long moment of complete silence before all four of us burst into laughter. “Seriously, Chloe, don’t you have enough girlfriends already?” She shrugs, unrepentant. “Why don’t you two catch up, though? Alyssa, I’ll be back down in a few minutes.” She gives her… girlfriend? a quick peck on the cheek, then leads the way upstairs.

When I knock on the door to our rooms, there’s a long pause before Vic calls out, “go away,” in a tired, despondent voice.

“But only just got here,” Kate calls back.

There’s an even longer pause before Vic responds, and this time it sounds like she’s just on the other side of the door. “Kate? Is that really you?”

“Yes. I’ve barely been away four weeks, and you’ve already lost all sense of perspective?” Not the soft approach, then.

“I’m just trying to keep everyone safe.”

“Because you have the Coronavirus.”

“Exactly. See, you understand.”

“You have a cough.”

“Yes.”

“And a temperature.”

“Well… not really.”

“Shortness of breath, though.”

“Not as such…”

“You don’t really sound like your nose is blocked up or your throat is sore.”

“It is. A little.” Vic sounds almost petulant now.

“From the coughing?”

“I suppose.”

“So, basically, you have… a cough. Have you at least taken something for that?”

“There isn’t any treatment for the virus,” Vic mutters rebelliously.

“You don’t have Coronavirus, Victoria, you have borderline hypochondria.”

“You don’t know that. You’re not a doctor.”

Kate sighs. “Victoria Maribeth Chase, you are being honestly ridiculous. Your girlfriend hasn’t seen you in over a week, and presumably hasn’t kissed you for at least a couple of days longer than that…”

“What? We… you know… the night before I started coughing. I certainly don’t do that without kissing. I’m not a hooker.”

“Right…” drawls Kate. “So, with all the research you’ve presumably being doing while you’re self-isolating, you’ll know that people with COVID–19 are infectious for at least two days before they start showing symptoms? That means that in the unlikely event you _do_ have it, then that chances that Taylor _doesn’t_ are approximately zero.” Silence from the other side of the door. “Isolate yourself from the rest of us if you must, but at least let your girlfriend in, even if you wear a mask and sit on the opposite side of the room.”

There’s another long pause. “I just want to keep Taylor safe. I love her so much, and I can’t bear the thought of…”

“You won’t. And besides, if she doesn’t come in, she won’t be able to tell you about my new girlfriend.” More silence.

“You don’t fight fair,” Vic says at last, but I can hear the beginnings of a smile in her voice – and the key turning in the lock.

“I learned from the best,” Kate replies, almost fondly, before turning to me. “I’ll leave you two in peace.” She winks, then heads back downstairs.

I open the door, and step into our private lounge. Vic has already retreated to the couch on the far side of the room. Unsure, I sit down on the chair, a safe distance away. I drink in the sight of my girlfriend, casually dressed as she is in a plain tee and yoga pants – albeit high-end designer ones, of course.

“I’ve been such a fucking idiot,” Vic says. “I was so scared that I had this thing, and that I might give it to you, and I could _never_ have forgiven myself. Instead, I’ve pushed you away for no good reason, and I am _so_ sorry.”

“S’okay, as long as I get to see you now.” After a moment, Vic pats the couch next to her. I practically throw myself across the room, and into her arms.

I can still remember the first time Vic held me like this as if it were yesterday. It was around a month before we graduated from Blackwell, I had a sense of impending doom that my time with the love of my life was about to come to an end without her ever even knowing.

“What’s up, sweet T?” Vic asked. We were hanging out in her room on a Saturday morning, not entirely recovered from the night before. “You know you can talk to me about anything, right?”

“I know, it’s just…”

“Please, Taylor, I know there’s something that’s been weighing on you for months. I’ve watched you come close to talking about it, then backing off again. You don’t have to go through whatever it is alone.”

“But that’s just it, soon I will be.”

“Oh, T, is that what this is about? You won’t be alone. I’m not going to let you drop out of touch. Courtney, sure, but never you.”

“Really?” It wouldn’t be the same, but maybe it would be easier…

“Yes, really.” She reached out to touch my face. “You’re far too important to me to let go.” There was a tenderness in her eyes that I couldn’t remember seeing there before, and just for a moment I allowed myself to hope, to believe, to be brave… and before I could second-guess myself…

“I love you.” There. I’d said it. Whatever happened next, at least I wouldn’t have to live the rest of my life wondering ‘what if?’

Vic froze. “You love _me_? Like, _love_ love?”

I looked down, afraid to see what expression might appear on her face. “I’ve been in love with you for years.”

After a moment’s hesitation, she said, “come here,” and pulled me down into her arms. “I wish you’d said something sooner… although I understand why you didn’t. I know I can still be cruel sometimes, no matter how hard I try. But… I need to tell you that even if I’m not ready to say what you just did, I think I might be falling for you too. The last few weeks, I just haven’t been able to get you out of my mind. Would I ever see you again after graduation? Would you even want to?”

“Of course I want to, silly!”

“Then you will. In fact… rather than moving back home after you leave Blackwell, how would you feel about moving to Portland?”

“With you?”

“Mmm-hmm. I told you that I don’t have to stay in halls, and the apartment I found has a second bedroom. It’s kinda tiny, and I was planning on setting it up as a darkroom, but it’s yours if you want it.”

“I…” I looked up at Vic. “I want it. I want _you_.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah. Maybe if you play your cards right, you can have me _and_ a darkroom in your apartment.”

“Hmm. I think I might like that sound of that.”

Slowly, I pushed myself upright, then leaned in, and kissed her.

“Yes,” Vic breathed afterwards, “I like the sound of that a _lot_.”


	3. Chloe & Rachel & Max

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Seems like I am finding writing time without my commute, after all. That, or the plot bunnies are particularly insistent at the moment.

###### Chloe

“Well, well, possessive Kate. That’s new,” I tell Alyssa, “even if it was about as serious as my flirting.”

“Wait… so you _don’t_ want me?” she asks with a big, fake pout.

“I can barely keep up with two women; I think that adding a third would probably kill me,” I say, before adding thoughtfully, “what a way to go, though.”

She laughs. “In any case, I’m a ‘one person at a time’ kinda woman.”

“So, this thing with Kate, is it serious then?”

Alyssa thinks for a moment. “Honestly? I’m not sure, yet. It’s barely been two weeks since we moved past a little innocent flirting, and four since we saw each other for the first time in years. Sure, we were best friends at Blackwell, so that certainly speeds things along, and maybe I had a little bit of a crush on Kate back then, too. So… yeah, I’d like it to be serious, and even out of her shell, Kate doesn’t strike me as someone who would enter into a relationship lightly.”

“Good. Just remember that if you hurt her, I _will_ break every single bone in your body.”

Alyssa squints at me. “I can’t tell if you’re being serious.”

“Eh, a little of both,” I say. “I might not come after you with a Louisville Slugger, but if you break Kate’s heart, you will be answering to me – assuming one of the others doesn’t get to you first.”

“Is there a reason you’re all so protective of her?”

“Because she’s _Kate_ ” I tell her, as if that explains everything. “There isn’t a woman in this house she hasn’t helped through at least a couple of seriously rough patches. We all owe her a lot, one way or another.”

Alyssa smiles. “Yeah, that does sound like Kate. And… well, the way things are going, chances are the two of us are going to be stuck in this house together for weeks, or even months. Hopefully that means that if this isn’t going to work, we’ll figure it out before either of us is in too deep.”

“You’re probably right about that,” I tell her, darkly, trying not to think about what the pandemic might mean for me.

“I’m just glad Kate was there last week, or I’d be homeless as well as jobless right now.” And there it is, I think, a reason for me not to feel _too_ sorry for myself.

“Shit, I’m sorry Alyssa. That royally sucks. But, we were all so proud of Kate when she won that scholarship, and I’m glad it means we’re able to help you out, too.”

“Thanks, Chloe. So… about these girlfriends of yours: anyone I’d know?”

I can’t help smirking. “You could say that.”

“Ah. Rachel and Max, then.”

“You’re not even going to pretend to be surprised, are you?”

“Dude. Pretty much the entire year we were all at Blackwell together you had a huge, obvious crush on Rachel, and Max had a huge, obvious crush on you. But how’d you actually end up together? Are you, like, a triad, or what?”

“Nah, I mean, I’m dating both of them, obviously, but Rachel and Max aren’t romantically involved or anything.”

“So, no hot threesomes, then.”

“Well, I didn’t say _that_.” I don’t say any more about it, either, though. “As for how we got together…”

* * *

I fell for Rachel the night of _The Tempest_ and, for one brief, glorious moment, I thought she felt the same way. But then… family drama ensued. Hers, not mine, for once. After that, things were never the same. On one level, we became immeasurably closer; but when it came to romance, our prospects receded into the distance. Rachel always contrived to keep me at arm’s length, and after a while I accepted that. Her friendship was far too precious for me to risk ruining it with my clearly unrequited desire for something more.

That’s not to say it didn’t hurt to see her dating, even though I knew that they were only ever dalliances. Boys and girls who would find a place in her bed for a time, but never in her heart. It could have been worse; at least I didn’t have to play the part of the girl comforting her best friend after a bad breakup. They were never bad for _her_.

And then… along came Max. The first day of my final year at high school, and there she was, out of the blue, my long lost best friend. We almost didn’t recognize each other, and then we slipped into one of those movie scenes where the two characters run towards each other in slow motion. We held each other so tightly that I almost cracked a rib. All those unanswered text messages? Forgotten in a moment.

I introduced Max to Rachel – who I’d only talked to about her, like, a million times. I thought the first meeting went well; it was only later that I recognized the way Rachel looked at Max for what it was: a prize fighter sizing up her opponent. No longer having my undivided attention rankled her, just a little, but things soon settled into a new equilibrium – until Max’s crush on me became too obvious to ignore.

In another life, I would have happily fallen into her arms, ridden off into the sunset, all that good shit. In this life, though, I was still in love with Rachel, and I wasn’t going to run the risk of hurting Max by getting involved with her while I still had feelings for someone else. And so, I did what Rachel did, and kept her at arms length; friendship only. Minus all the dating other people, though.

The year seemed to fly by, its end sneaking up on us seemingly without warning. Rachel and I had plans here in Portland after we graduated – she would be going to drama school, and I’d be training as a mechanic – but Max still had her second senior year to go. We promised to see each other regularly, but best of all, she invited me to spend the summer in Seattle with her parents; I jumped at the chance.

We got ourselves jobs stacking shelves; working together all day, and hanging out together on the evenings and weekends. I still stayed in regular touch with Rachel, of course, but without her constant presence, Max and I finally managed to get back the connection we’d had all those years before. It was awesome – and then I almost ruined it by kissing her. Thankfully, Max was understanding when I explained that I still had feelings with Rachel, and couldn’t in good conscience date her right then.

When I moved to Portland at summer’s end, Rachel greeted me with great enthusiasm – and poorly disguised jealousy. The look she gave me when I admitted to the kiss was less anger, and more fear, though. After that, things between us subtly shifted. When we spent time together, Rachel seemed more attuned to my needs and feelings. It wasn’t until Max asked me, the first weekend that she came up to visit, that I realized Rachel hadn’t been on a single date.

The second time Max came to visit, just at the start of the Christmas break, was when everything blew up. I hadn’t slept well the night before, and it had been a particularly strenuous day in class, so after picking Max up from the bus station, I needed to go home and crash for a couple of hours. I got up feeling refreshed, but when I started to open the door to the lounge, I hesitated when I heard heated voices.

“…I don’t want you stealing her away from me,” Rachel was saying.

“I’m not trying to,” Max retorted, “but I’m falling in love with Chloe, and I just want to pursue a relationship with her without your interference. I have no interest in telling her who else she can and can’t spend time with, and I certainly don’t want to deprive her of what’s clearly an incredibly important friendship.”

“You say that now,” Rachel began, “but…”

“But what, Rachel? Are you planning to stop Chloe from _ever_ having a relationship – or is it just me that you have a problem with, because I have even more history with Chloe than you do?”

There’s a long pause. “Maybe,” Rachel admitted softly, “or maybe I want the person Chloe has a relationship with to be me.” Her simple statement sent me reeling. After all that time, was Rachel actually admitting to having feelings for me?

“Right,” Max said, her voice dripping sarcasm. “It seems an awfully big coincidence that after all these years, you finally develop a romantic attraction to Chloe the moment someone else comes along.”

“I didn’t say it was a coincidence. And the feelings have been there for a long time.” Rachel sighed. “I was just suppressing them because I was scared of losing her if it didn’t work out. Now I’m terrified that I’ll lose her if I don’t try.”

“So, once again, it’s about what you want, rather than what Chloe needs. She may be willfully blind to the way you treat her, but I’m not.”

“Like you’re any better, Max” Rachel retorted. “I saw the deep, dark hole you left Chloe in when you fucked off to Seattle.”

“That’s not fair; I didn’t have any choice in leaving.”

“Yeah, but you sure chose not to respond to all her text messages – or you simply didn’t care.”

“That was a long time ago,” Max said, after a pregnant pause. “I’ve changed, and I’ve apologized.”

“Don’t I deserve the chance to do the same?”

“So, what, you want me to just bow out? Feelings don’t work that way, Rachel.”

“No, we leave it to Chloe. Loser steps aside gracefully, and the winner promises to make sure they don’t monopolize her.”

There was a long silence. All sorts of scenarios played through my head, some better than others, some far worse.

“Fine,” said Max at last. “I’m not keen on the idea of this being some kind of a competition, but I don’t have any better ideas. So, do we tell Chloe, or do we leave her to figure it out on her own?”

“Knowing our luck, she’s been listening to this entire conversation.” They both laugh, just a little, and I take that as my cue to open the door.

“Well, I think I might have missed the beginning, but I got the gist of it.” Both of them jumped. “I’m not sure that either of you did yourselves any favors by talking like that behind my back, though.”

“Chloe…” they both began, but I held up a hand.

“I like both of you. A lot. Maybe more. I’m not going to choose one of you over the other, because no matter what you say, we all know that if I start dating one of you, it’s going to destroy my friendship with the other.”

“So, that’s it,” Rachel said bitterly. “ _Neither_ of us gets to be with you?”

“That’s one option,” I told her. “The alternative is that you _both_ do.” Max and Rachel shared a look, uncertain. “Not like a three-way – unless you both want that – but more of a time-share. And I guess if you wanted to see someone else as well, that would only be fair, but… Yeah. Those are your options: either I date both of you, or neither of you.”

For long moments, they simply stared at me.

“Can we have some time to think about it?” Max asked.

“Of course,” I said, “take as long as you need.”

* * *

“I’m guessing they both said ‘yes,’” Alyssa says.

“Yeah,” I tell her. I know there’s a dopey grin on my face right now, but I honestly don’t give a shit. “The first year or so was awkward at times, but eventually Rachel and Max got to be pretty good friends, and it’s been smooth sailing ever since.”

“I’m glad you’re happy; I just hope that I’ll find the same with Kate. Speaking, of which, where is she?”

“She ran into Max,” says Rachel, coming down the stairs, “and now they’re getting all caught up – so don’t expect to see either of them for at least an hour or two. You’re welcome to hang out with us, though, Alyssa. Good to see you again, by the way.”

“You too. And, sure, a crash course on getting to know my housemates sounds like fun. What’s the plan?”

“Well, I was thinking of rolling Chloe and me a joint, but I’d forgotten that we’re all out.”

“Oooh!” says Alyssa. “I actually have some weed to spare – haven’t been smoking any the last couple of weeks, what with hanging out with Kate all the time.” She hurries over to the pile of her stuff in a corner of the hall, and doesn’t see the look I share with Rachel, but we’re all smiling when she comes back with a decent-sized baggie.

“Awesome!” Rachel says. “Let’s take this out back.”

Half an hour or so later, that’s where we are, sat around the patio table, when Kate finds us. “Are you two corrupting my girlfriend?” she asks.

“Not at all,” I tell her. “This is her stash we’re smoking.”

“Alyssa!” Kate says, shocked, and the poor girl turns bright red.

After a dramatic pause, Kate continues, “you’ve been holding out on me!” She reaches over, plucks the joint from Rachel’s fingers, and takes a long drag. “Wow, this is some good stuff!”

Alyssa just stares at her, slack-jawed for a moment, before turning to me. “You corrupted _Kate?_ ”

“No! We would never! It was her last girlfriend who taught her all sorts of bad habits.”

Kate shoots me a dark look, then goes to pull Alyssa up. “She taught me some good habits too,” she purrs, “why don’t we go up to my bedroom, and I’ll demonstrate.”

Alyssa thinks about that for maybe quarter of a second. “It was lovely to see you too again, I’m sure we’ll catch up more soon.” With that, she and Kate vanish inside.

* * *

I manage to keep my mask in place until the next evening, after dinner, when we’ve retired to our ‘wing’ of the house. Max notices the moment it slips. “What’s the matter, honey?” she asks, always countering my outlandish nicknames with overly saccharine ones.

“You heard about the Governor’s stay-at-home order, right?”

“Of course – oh, shit, this is about the workshop, isn’t it?”

“People aren’t going to be riding their bikes if they’re staying at home. And if they aren’t riding them, they won’t need ’em fixed. And if nobody needs their bikes fixed, then I sure as hell won’t be able to pay the rent on my workshop. Not to mention the loan repayments for all the equipment.”

“We’ll figure something out…” Rachel begins.

“Like what?” I snap at her.

“Like taking advantage of that month-on-month contract that Vic was so sniffy about,” she shoots back. “If you’re not going to have any customers, there’s no point having the workshop, and if you don’t have the workshop, you don’t need to pay rent.”

“We can store all your gear in the garage here,” Max adds. “Hell, tell Victoria to park her fancy car on the drive, and you can set up shop in there. There must be some locals with bikes that they’ll still need to get groceries, or some who are like Dana, and will still be going to work – no matter how bad things get.”

“You know how long I waited to get that space in the center of town,” I whine. “Where I can get trade from people dropping off their bikes while they’re at work. If I give it up, who knows how long before I can find another place?”

“Sweetie, having the space won’t do you any good if your business goes bankrupt. Besides, what are the odds of anyone else wanting to take a risk on renting out that place before this is all over? Maybe we can work out some sort of holding payment with the landlord, or something…”

“I just feel like I’ll be such failure if I give it up,” I admit.

“No.” Rachel says firmly. “No fucking way. Millions of people are getting laid off. Thousands of business are probably going to go under before this virus is done – doubtless including some big names. If you manage to stay afloat at _all_ , that’s a huge success. We’re all going to be in the same boat – my modeling jobs are drying up, and Max has already had some of her weddings and Bar Mitzvahs cancelled.”

“Hey, that’s not all I do,” Max says, faking outrage. “Seriously, though, we’re here for you, and for each other. Whether it’s heavy lifting to get your stuff here, help publicizing your new, _temporary_ location online, whatever.”

“Plus, if worst comes to worst, I bet Vic will let you borrow against your equity in the house, and I’d be willing to do the same with my share, if that’s what it takes – and I’m sure Max is too.”

“Absolutely.” There’s no hesitation. No suggestion from either of my girlfriends that they were playing at one-upmanship. Those days are long behind us.

“I love you guys so much,” I tell them, embarrassed to find that I’m choking up. They don’t seem to care though, instead I find myself pulled into a three-way hug. It’s always me in the middle; no matter that Max and Rachel have become fast friends, the romantic interest I was half-expecting to develop between them never materialized. That’s not to say there isn’t _some_ attraction there… which gets me thinking. I get up from the couch, pulling Rachel and Max after me, then tug them both in the direction of my bedroom.

“You want to…?” Rachel asks.

I pull her into a kiss. “If that’s okay. I think that maybe we could all use it.” I turn to Max, and kiss her, too. “What do you think? I know it’s less than three weeks until my birthday.”

“We don’t dole out threesomes like special favors, Chloe, and we don’t ration them either,” she says. “They’re just something that happens, occasionally, when we’re all in the mood.”

“And, sure, maybe Max and I make more of an effort to be ‘in the mood’ on occasions like your birthday, but that’s all it is.” Rachel turns to Max. “What do you think, Maxie, are you in the mood?”

Max’s response is a passionate kiss. Fuck me, but that’s hot to watch.

Eventually, they break apart, and turn to look at me. “It strikes me that our girlfriend is wearing entirely too many clothes,” Rachel says.

Max nods. “We should do something about that. Immediately.”

Together, they take me to bed.

Later – _much_ later – and for the first time in weeks, I sleep well.


	4. Steph & Brooke

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, has it really been more than two months? Sorry about that; time sure is moving strangely these days…

###### Steph

I leave the office with a spring in my step. Not only do I have a date this evening, but today was super-productive. I didn’t have any meetings, so I was able to keep my headphones on all day and _focus_. I got a bunch of concept art sketches finished off, and scripted out a first draft of the next scene of the game. Don’t get me wrong, I like interacting with my co-workers in person – that’s why I moved back to Portland at the start of the month, after all – but sometimes I really need a head-down, no distractions day. Especially if I want to be out of the door on time, and with a clear conscience.

It’s only a few minutes’ drive to the robotics lab where Brooke works. I stand, leaning on my car, and waiting impatiently for her to come out. Running into Brooke at a Starbucks in town, barely a week after I arrived here, was a real stroke of luck. It’s been six months since Josie dumped me, and if that’s another reason why I was happy to move across the country, it also means that now I have, I’m that much more ready to move on.

I knew Brooke back at Blackwell; we were both in the drama and AV clubs, and she was a player in a couple of my Dungeons and Dragons campaigns. Sure, I noticed that she’s cute back then, but seventeen to fifteen felt like a bit too much of an age gap – and besides, I was sort of a mentor to her backstage, so it would have been all kinds of creepy. Twenty-six to twenty-four, on the other hand, seems like nothing, so I didn’t hesitate to ask her out this time around. Tonight will mark our third date, and I’m hopeful that there will be plenty more to come.

When Brooke does come out, she hurries over to me with a smile that doesn’t quite reach her eyes. “Hey, what’s up?” I ask, after kissing her cheek.

“Our dinner reservations got cancelled because of the lockdown,” she says.

“What lockdown?”

Brooke looks at me in disbelief. “Have you, like, avoided all social contact today or something?” She goes on to explain what the governor announced, and whilst I can’t help thinking that it’s about damn time, I’m still pissed off that it’s put a crimp in our evening plans.

“I’d invite you over to my place for dinner, but apartment hunting still isn’t going well, and I think it’s still a bit early for you to be meeting my parents.”

Brooke perks up. “We could go to my place, though. I think it’s just the right moment for you to meet my housemates. Plus, if we’re lucky, someone will already be making dinner, and neither of us will have to cook.”

“I guess we have a plan, then.” I pop the trunk so that Brooke can put her folding bike in there, then we head off, with her acting as my human sat-nav. In what feel like no time at all, we pull up outside a building that appears to be some kind of gothic mansion.

“So, are your housemates the Munsters, or the Addams Family?” I ask.

Brooke simply rolls her eyes. “Like you’re the first person to ever make that joke. Come on in and meet, well, whoever’s around, I guess.”

We head inside, and I almost immediately find myself face-to-face with Chloe Price. She seems as surprised as I am, but recovers a little faster. “Fuck me! Good to see you, Steph; I didn’t know you were in town.” She shoots a mock glare at Brooke.

“Likewise; glad to see that you made it out of the Bay.”

Chloe looks like she’s about to give me a hug, but then backs off. “I should probably let you go through de-contamination first. Come through to the kitchen when you’re done; dinner should be ready soon.”

“You _cook?_ ” I ask, somewhat skeptical.

Chloe presses a hand to her chest and looks at me in mock affront. “I resent the implication! I’m a grown woman now, I have… life skills, and shit.”

“Not to mention a couple of girlfriends you can sweet-talk into doing most of the work,” says Brooke. Chloe simply smirks, and saunters off.

“Wait, what?” I ask.

“Oh, yeah, she’s got this whole poly thing going on with Max and Rachel.”

“Rachel… Amber?” I’m not sure what I want the answer to be.

“Yeah. You know her, right?” I simply nod. Her eyes narrow. “Wait, did you and Rachel…?”

“No!” I say, immediately. “I mean, I did have a crush on her…”

“Who hasn’t?” mutters Brooke.

“…but nothing ever happened. Chloe sorta… warned me off, I guess, even if I’m pretty sure nothing happened between them while we were at Blackwell.”

Brooke seems to relax a little. “No, they didn’t get together until after they moved to Portland.” She takes my hand, and tugs me in the opposite direction to where Chloe went. “C’mon, the bathroom’s this way.”

After we’ve thoroughly sterilized our hands, Brooke leads me to the kitchen, where we find Chloe stirring a large pot of chili. Sure enough, there are a couple of other women clearing up a pile of utensils – and one of them is Rachel. She spots me immediately.

“Hey, if it isn’t my favorite stage manager!” She comes over and surprises me with a hug; something I’m damned certain she hasn’t done before – I would have remembered.

Brooke actually growls a little, and Rachel backs off. “Don’t worry, I’ll behave,” she says, laughing.

“Hey, come taste this,” Chloe calls, holding up a spoon. I walk over, and take a mouthful. “What do you think?” she asks.

It’s… really good, but also “ _hot!_ ” – which is the only word that actually makes it out of my mouth. Chloe laughs, and the woman I assume to be Max hands me a glass.

“Here, have some of Kate’s horchata. She always makes a gallon or two of it whenever Chloe’s cooking.” I take a long drink, and the milky liquid immediately soothes my mouth and throat.

“Thanks,” I tell her, before glancing back at Chloe. “It _is_ good, just… maybe a little more heat than I’d normally go for.”

She grins. “Keep dating Brooke, and maybe you’ll get used to it.” She goes over to a bell that hangs from the ceiling in a corner of the kitchen, and rings it loudly.

Within a couple of minutes, another half dozen women arrive; most of them familiar faces, and all, it seems, Blackwell alumni. There’s a flurry of activity as plates, glasses, and flatware are carried through a large archway into the adjacent dining room. That’s followed by Chloe’s chili, large pans of pasta and rice, bags of tortilla chips, and a host of other accompaniments.

Sitting down at the large table is like joining a big, riotous family dinner; a woman called Kate seems to be the unofficial house ‘Mom’. Brooke tells me that she, like Max, was part of her cohort of seniors, then introduces me to the final member of that group. Alyssa, sat on my other side, is Kate’s girlfriend, and another recent arrival in the house.

“I only got here yesterday,” she tells me. “It’s been a little overwhelming, but I think I’m going to like it here. And, hey, I know there’s at least one more unused bedroom if you want to save me from being the only newbie in the house.”

That gives me pause for thought. “Well, I’m currently back living with my parents, so I’d certainly consider it.”

Once everybody’s finished serving themselves, the general topic of conversation shifts to the new and shiny – ergo, me. I end up spending most of the meal giving an account of my life over the past few years, and only getting brief updates on what everyone else has been up to. That’s fine, though; unless things with Brooke take a turn for the worse, I’ll hopefully have plenty more opportunities to catch up with old friends and acquaintances, as well as making some new ones.

After dinner, Brooke leads me up to her room, on the grounds that it’s the only place in the house where we can get a little privacy. This _is_ supposed to be a date, after all. The first thing I notice is the awesome gaming rig she has set up, so we spend a couple of minutes geeking out over that, before settling in on her small couch.

At this point, I’m not really sure what happens next. I packed a small overnight bag in the car, in case I got lucky tonight, but after the stay at home order, I’m not sure whether that would even be a good idea. This might be the last time I see Brooke for weeks, or even months; starting a sexual relationship now sounds like a good way to make that separation ten times more frustrating.

Maybe she read my mind, because she offers up an alternate solution. “What Alyssa said over dinner, about there being empty rooms in the house; that could be a serious offer, if you wanted to get back out of your parents’ place.”

“Really? Just like that?” I’m maybe a _little_ skeptical. “And everyone else would be okay with it?”

“Why not? You’ve met them all now, and you knew most of us already. Anyone give you the impression they might object.”

“Well… no, not really.”

“Besides, Kate brought Alyssa home from her writers retreat without any kind of warning, so her moving in was pretty much a _fait accompli_. I mean, it’s not like any of us could say ‘no’ to Kate anyway, but… please think about it.”

I do. “It would have to be straight away – tomorrow – or not until after the lockdown.”

“I guess so.”

“What’s the deal with this place, anyway?”

“Oh, right. The trio found it a few months after I started at PSU; it was pretty run down, and had apparently been on the market for a while without much interest. Somehow – probably with a little help from either Taylor or Kate – they talked Victoria into stumping up the cash to buy the place, then they rounded up the rest of the ex-Blackwellians in town. We all pitched in what free time we could over the rest of the school year to get the place at least into a livable condition. Chloe and Rachel moved in after a month or so, as soon as they could give notice on their apartment, Vic and Taylor a month or so after that, and the rest of us when we moved out of dorms.”

“We spent most of that summer properly renovating, decorating and furnishing the place, although we came to an agreement to leave the outside looking the way it does; apparently it gives the place ‘character’ or something. It’s all fresh paint, just done in colors to make it _look_ old. Anyway, after we were done, Vic got a valuation done, then split the difference from what she paid nine ways and told us we all had an equity stake in the place, and any ‘rent’ we pay her just adds onto that. It also means that, legally, we’re part-owners, so she couldn’t kick us out, or sell the place from under us. Not that she’d do that, but… peace of mind, you know?”

“That’s actually pretty cool – but where does it leave me?”

“I guess we’d have to work out the details, but we’ve got three… no, two empty rooms. I mean, not _completely_ empty; they’ve got cheap and nasty beds and stuff that were used as temporary furniture way back when. Enough that you wouldn’t have to move in here,” she gestures at her room, “while you get it properly decorated and furnished. That might be a little too much, too quickly – not to mention totally cliché.”

I put on my best flirty voice. “Doesn’t mean we can’t have sleepovers, though… right?”

“You wanna stay over tonight?” Brooke asks, but I get the impression she’s not entirely sure.

“Just to sleep. Maybe a little snuggling. I’m in no rush.” She relaxes; it seems I read her right.

“Maybe some kisses, too?” I have to hold back the urge to giggle at her hopeful tone. It’s totally adorable.

“Whatever you want.”

Brooke thinks about that for a moment. “I want kisses. Now.”

“Yes, ma’am,” I tell her, then get up, and turn to straddle her in one smooth move. Brooke gasps in surprise, then pulls me in.

* * *

I wake up the next morning still spooning my girlfriend. Girlfriend? Well, I suppose I am kinda planning to move in with her. Brooke makes happy, sleepy noise when I kiss the back of her neck, but shows no sign of actually waking up, even when I get out of bed. I’d love to stay holding her, but my right arm is numb, I need to pee, and my stomach is rumbling.

A few minutes later, I make my way down to the kitchen, where I’m surprised to find Chloe. “I was _not_ expecting you to be an early riser,” I tell her.

“Hey, I’m a responsible business owner now,” she tells me with mock indication, before coming over to give me a big hug. “Damn, it’s good to see you again, Steph. Sorry we didn’t really get the chance to catch up properly last night.”

“No problem, we’ll have plenty of time for that.”

“So you _are_ moving in?” I nod, and she does a dramatic fist pump. “Yes! I thought so, but Rach wasn’t sure, and Max said it would be too soon for Brooke.”

“Well, Max would probably have been right, if it wasn’t for this lockdown.”

“Yeah, that virus has fucked up all our plans,” she says, bitterly. After a moment, she shakes it off, and goes back to the cereal box she was pulling from a cupboard when I came in. “Hungry?”

“That I am.” I get a sudden thought. “Say, do you happen to know what Brooke likes to eat in the morning?”

Chloe turns slowly to look at me. “Oooh! Wanting to impress your lady with breakfast in bed?” I nod. She winks. “Well, it’ll need to be something to help replace all those calories you two probably burnt off last night.”

I feel my face flushing. “We didn’t… burn calories.”

“Oh. Right. Sorry. What Max said, I guess.” She shrugs. “It’s not exactly like I was a fast mover with either of my girlfriends.”

“You need to tell me how that happened some time,” I interject.

“Sure thing,” she tells me, “always happy to brag.” Then she flinches. “Shit, I forgot that you had a thing for Rachel.”

“Ancient history,” I reassure her.

“Cool,” she says, clearly in no need to make any more of it. Then, “Pancakes. Bacon and pancakes.”

“The two most important breakfast food groups,” I agree.

“I should make some for Max and Rach as well, to… uh… thank them for… uh… last night.” Now _she’s_ blushing. Wait… is she implying that that they had a threesome? Not that I’m jealous, but… I’m not _not_ jealous, either.

Chloe puts the cereal back in the cupboard, then goes to the fridge and pulls out a large pack of bacon, a jug of milk, and sticks of butter. She sends me into the adjacent pantry to get eggs, and by the time I’ve found them, she’s already creaming butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl

“Oooh, pancakes!” I turn to see Kate coming in. “Any chance you could make enough batter for two more? Actually, scratch that. You cooked last night, you shouldn’t have to do it this morning as well. Step away from the bowl!”

Chloe laughs. “Fine, fine. I’ll just take care of the bacon.”

“Make sure you don’t ‘take care of’ too much of it,” Kate teases. “Leave some for the rest of us, okay?”

Chloe rolls her eyes, but I can see the friendly affection in them. I like this happier, softer version of Chloe.

“Say, um, if you are going to be staying here, how would you feel about DM’ing a game for us?”

“I would _love_ to. I haven’t had the chance to go looking for a gaming group since I moved here.” I miss the old gang back east; wrapping up the epic campaign I’d been running for a couple of years was one of the most bittersweet things about leaving. “Who’s ‘we,’ though?”

“Me, for sure, even if I kind suck at it…”

“You don’t suck, Chloe, you’re just more into the role-playing than the mechanics. There’s nothing wrong with that, it’s just a different play style.”

She gives me a slightly forced smile. “Thanks. Anyway, your new girlfriend used to play with us, so I’m sure she’ll be up for it. And I have a sneaking suspicion that Victoria would like to be part of the group.”

“Really?” That sounds… unlikely.

“Yeah. Now that we’re not in high school any more, she’s stopped doing her whole Regina George thing, and decided to let her geek flag fly.”

“That’s… actually kinda awesome.”

“Could I join in as well?” Kate asks, shyly. “Maybe Alyssa too, if she’s interested?”

Chloe looks surprised by this, but also pleased. “Sure, the more the merrier,” I say. “Have you played before?”

Kate shakes her head. “No, but since Max got us playing LOTRO, and I found that I really enjoyed it, I have wondered what it would be like to play a tabletop RPG, rather than one on a computer. It’s all about creating a shared story together, right? Telling stories is what I love.”

“That’s a big part of it, for sure. Well, give me a couple of weeks, and I’ll see what I can come up with.” My mind’s already racing with the possibilities. It sounds like for this group, I’ll want to pick a system that emphasizes role-play over stats. And… something about Kate’s eagerness makes me want to plan for the possibility of a DM handover after a couple of months or so. It’s fun playing from the other side of the screen, as well.

A little while later, we have seven plates stacked with light, fluffy pancakes, and strips of crispy bacon. I put two of them onto a tray the Chloe passes me, along with a couple of glasses of OJ. Kate passes me one more thing, a bottle of apple butter syrup. “It’s Brooke’s favorite,” she tells me with a wink.

Back upstairs, I slip into Brooke’s room, wondering if she’ll be awake. A sleepy, “hey, you,” from the bed gives me my answer. “Where’d you go?” She sniffs. “Ooh, something smells good.” A moment later, a lamp on one of the bedside tables comes on, and I see Brooke smiling at me – and eyeing up the tray I’m carrying. “You didn’t tell me that my new girlfriend is a domestic goddess,” she says.

“I’d love to claim the credit, but I ran into Chloe and Kate in the kitchen, and they did most of the work. Also, apparently I’m going to be running a tabletop game for y’all.”

“Oh, that’s an awesome idea, especially given we’ll all be stuck here for the duration.”

“Which reminds me; after we’ve eaten, I need to call my parents to tell them that I’m moving out, and arrange to somehow pick up my stuff. At least most of it is still in boxes.”

“Thank-you for doing this,” she says. “It would have really sucked it I didn’t get to see you again for ages.”

“I know,” I tell her as I set the breakfast tray down on the bed. “That’s why I want to do it.”

Brooke looks at the food. “You didn’t bring any syrup for yourself?”

“I’m happy to have the same as you.”

She grabs the bottle, and holds it melodramatically to her chest. “But this is mine! Who knows when I’ll be able to get more.”

“Oh, it’s like that, is it? Perhaps I can… persuade you.”

I’m not the only one with a gleam in my eye as I push her back down onto the bed.


	5. Juliet & Dana

###### Juliet

I’m woken up by Rachel sneaking out. She never stays the night, of course; only Chloe gets that privilege. But, unlike Max, Rachel isn’t satisfied with their shared girlfriend being her only outlet. When I talked to Chloe about it, she just shrugged, and said it was hardly fair to ask Rachel to be monogamous when _she_ wasn’t; Max’s comment was “as long as she’s being safe, it’s not really any of my business.” I’m not sure how I feel about it, for all sorts of reasons, but I still can’t always say no to her.

Unlike Chloe, Rachel doesn’t seem to be interested in having more than one girlfriend; she just likes to flirt with every woman she meets, and take some of us to bed occasionally. I know she’s slept with Dana about as often as she has me – not exactly helping our already dysfunctional relationship dynamic – but I’m not sure whether the moves she’s put on Brooke ever went anywhere. Vic and Taylor, she’s had enough decency not to try and get between.

And as for Kate… I’m not one to gossip, but – okay, I _am_ , but not about Kate, not after what happened to her – there was this one time that made me wonder. This was back during our second year in Portland, a couple of weeks after she caught her first girlfriend cheating on her. I saw Kate leading Rachel into her room, and there was something about their body language that’s always made me wonder. I’ve never had the guts to ask Kate about it, though, and it wouldn’t feel right to go behind her back by asking Rachel.

Anyway, I digress. The point is that I’m awake far too early in the morning. About the time, I realize, that Dana will be getting up for her shift at the hospital. I decide to head to the kitchen, fix myself a hot, milky drink that will help me get back to sleep, and make sure that my bestie has something to eat with her coffee before she leaves. Since I beat her downstairs, I fire up the espresso machine. A little while later, I’ve made a large hot chocolate for me, and start on doing a four-shot latte for Dana in her oversized travel mug.

When she _still_ hasn’t appeared by the time that’s ready, I’m disappointed; I was hoping we could hang out for a few minutes, but now it’s almost time for her to leave. I have a moment’s panic when I think I’ve misremembered her shift pattern, but a quick check of Dana’s schedule stuck to the fridge reassures me on that front. Instead, I stick a couple of Taylor’s cookies in a bag, then take them and the coffee up to Dana’s room. I knock, but there’s no answer.

When I open the door, I see that it’s still dark inside; clearly Dana has missed her alarm. Leaving her breakfast on the vanity, I go over to the bed. “Sweetie, you need to wake up,” I tell her as I gently shake her arm. “You’re going to be late for work.” When her only response is a grumbling moan, I realize that her skin is clammy. When I touch my hand to her forehead, I feel that she’s burning up.

“I don’t feel so good,” she says, her voice scratchy.

“I can tell; no work for you today. You okay to call the hospital, or d’you want me to do it?”

“I can manage,” she tells me, groping around on the cabinet next to her bed. I turn on the lamp, then unplug her phone and pass it to her. “Thanks,” she says, before making the call. At least she’s not going to have to deal with some asshat manager trying to make her go into work anyway; the rules forbid it. Even if it wasn’t outright dangerous, who wants to be treated by a sick nurse? Especially in the middle of a pandemic!

When she’s done with her call, Dana pulls a bottle of acetaminophen out of her cabinet, and dry-swallows a couple of tablets. Then, she gestures at her vanity. “Did you bring me coffee? Sorry, I don’t seem to be able to smell it.”

“Yeah, I was downstairs anyway, so I thought I’d make you some. Did you want it?”

She shakes her head. “Not if I want to get back to sleep. Why are you even up at this hour?” 

“Um…” I don’t see much point hiding it. “Rachel woke me on her way out.”

Dana shakes her head. “Seriously, would it kill her to spend the night?”

“I wouldn’t rule it out,” I tell her, earning a small laugh. “Honestly, though, I’m not sure I’d want her to. It might get a bit too easy for me to start pretending it was something it isn’t.”

“I know what you mean – and it’s not like I even want anything more from her. I still don’t quite get why Chloe’s with her after the shitty way Rachel used to treat her.”

“Exactly.” There isn’t anyone I want romance from right now – well, except for…

“Thanks for checking in on me, Jules, but I think I really need to get some more sleep.”

“Would you like me to stay?” I _want_ to stay, to make sure she’s okay.

“I’ll be fine; I don’t think you staying is going to help _either_ of us sleep.”

“Whatever you want, sweetie. Message me if you need anything, y’hear? You’ve been looking after people non-stop since this thing started; let me take care of you instead.”

“You don’t need to…”

“Promise me, Dana.”

“Okay, okay, I promise.”

“Good girl.” I kiss her on the forehead, then turn out the lamp and head back to my own room.

I sleep fitfully, and get up early to start work on the article I got assigned yesterday – a puff piece on ‘The Top 10 Things for Millennials to Do During Lockdown’ – while keeping one eye on my phone for any messages from Dana. It’s mid-morning before I finally get one: _Hey, could you come to my room when you get a minute?_ Thirty seconds later, I’m at her door.

“Stay there,” she says when I step into the room. It takes a moment to realize that she’s got a face mask on. “You didn’t need to drop everything right away, you know.”

“It’s fine. Not like I was in the middle of some Pulitzer prize-winning investigative journalism or anything. How’re you feeling?”

“Like shit.”

“Is it Covid?”

“Probably. Sorry, I should have made you keep your distance last night, but I was a little out of it.”

“Not your fault; I was already touching you to wake you up, remember?” I hesitate before asking, “do you need me to take you to the hospital?”

“No, I’m not having chest pains or trouble breathing, so there’s really no need for me to go there – they’d just send me back home again. I’d only be taking up a bed that could go to someone who needs it more. As long as you’re okay with looking after me…?”

“Of course. I’m insulted that you even feel the need to ask me that question.” I get a weak smile for that, at least.

“Thank-you. There are some masks and gloves in the cupboard over there; you should put a mask on now, and before coming in here in the future, and gloves before touching me or any of my stuff. You need to make sure everyone else knows not to come in here or our bathroom; you should use one of the other ones, too, unless you start showing symptoms.” I retrieve the protective gear while Dana goes on to give me a long list of do’s and don’ts – most of which are more about keeping me and the others safe than about helping her.

“What can I do for you right now?” I ask when she’s done.

“Something to eat and drink, please.”

I pass her the bag of cookies I brought up last night. “You can have these for starters. I’m guessing you don’t want the cold coffee, though.”

“Not so much. Probably best not to have any at all, what with caffeine being a diuretic and all. If you could bring me up some OJ, though, that would be _awesome_. Probably be a good idea for me to have a few bottles of water on hand, too.”

“No problemo!” I resist the urge to go over and physically comfort her, but it’s _hard_. Instead, I hurry down to the kitchen to rustle up some brunch. Kate and Alyssa show up a few minutes later, clearly with the same idea.

“Hey, Juliet,” Kate says brightly, then looks at what I’m doing. “Breakfast in bed for two? Did you and Dana patch things up again?” I shake my head then, to my horror, I burst into tears. Kate’s at my side in an instant. “What’s the matter? Did I say something wrong?”

“No,” I sob, “but Dana’s sick. Like, for-real sick. Not… fake Victoria flu.”

“Oh, no! Does she think it’s the coronavirus? Do we need to get her to hospital?”

“She does, but it’s not bad enough for that.”

“Well, is there anything I can do for her?”

I shake my head. “Thanks, but she said no-one should go in her room except for one designated carer.”

“And that should be you,” Kate says without hesitation. “Okay, well let me know if there’s anything I can do to help you help Dana, and tell her to call me any time if she wants a chat.”

“Thanks, Kate, I’ll do that.”

“For now, let us help you by making an epic breakfast for four,” Alyssa says. “We can always bring it up to Dana’s room and leave it outside for you, if you’d like.”

“That would be really great. Thanks, ladies.”

“You should go look after your girl,” Kate says, coming over to take my hand. She looks me right in the eye, in that slightly disconcerting way she has. A way of looking right through you, as if she can read your heart and soul as easily as she reads your face. “I know how much you care about her.” _Perhaps better than I do myself_ , I think. Kate gives my hand a meaningful squeeze, then goes over to help Alyssa with the food.

Their presence serves as a reminder; I pull out my phone, and send a quick message to the house WhatsApp group to let everyone know what’s going on. Then, I go into the pantry to grab a six-pack of bottled water, and a fresh carton of OJ from the fridge. Topping that off with a couple of plastic cups, I head back up to Dana’s room. Carefully taking the mask from where I left it hanging on the doorknob, I put it back on.

“Your beverage service is here, madam,” I tell her as I go in. She’s propped herself up with a huge pile of pillows, but she looks like she’s coming off a ten-day bender – and yet to me, she’s still beautiful.

“Thanks,” Dana says as I pass her a large cup of juice; she downs half of it in one gulp. I pop one of the water bottles out of the pack to go on her bed-side cabinet, and put the rest on the vanity. “More food?” she asks.

“I have my best chefs working on it,” I assure her.

“Is that so?” Dana asks me with a smile; a genuine one that’s reassuring to see.

“Yup, Kate and Alyssa are going to bring us up a tray and leave it outside, since they’re fixing breakfast for themselves.”

Dana glances at the clock. “Well, I’m glad _someone_ had a good night.”

“Please. This is Kate we’re talking about. They were probably up all night teaching each other French or something.” I don’t believe that for a minute, of course.

“Oh, yes,” says Dana, “I’m sure they’re a right pair of cunning linguists.” There’s a beat, then we both burst into laughter. It feels good, and gives way to easy conversation until our food is delivered. I stay to eat with her, although she makes me sit at the vanity – we can’t exactly keep our masks on for this.

After we’re done, Dana gently suggests that I should socially distance myself out of her room. As she doesn’t need anything else, I can’t think of an excuse to stay, even if all I want to do is cuddle her until she feels better. After taking the dishes back to the kitchen, I retreat to my room to work on my uninspiring article. And if pretty much every other resident of the house stops by to ask how Dana’s doing, I welcome the interruptions. The last of these is Rachel.

“Hey, Jules, how’s Dana doing?”

“Pretty crappy, but at least I can take care of her at home; hopefully it’s going to stay that way.”

Rachel take a long look at me. “You like that, don’t you? Not Dana being ill, obvs, but taking care of her. I’ve seen the way you look at her – and the way she looks at you. I don’t understand why it is that the two of you have never properly got together; at least for more than a couple weeks at a time.”

She sighs. “Sorry about sneaking out last night; I know that it’s my MO, but it’s still a shitty thing to do. And… I guess I’m worried that I’m part of the problem with you and Dana.”

“I can’t exactly argue with any of that, Rach. You can be a bit of a selfish asshole.”

She laughs at my bluntness. “You’re not wrong, and I need to do better, so I’m going to stop fucking with you and Dana. By, y’know, not fucking you.”

“Oh. Okay. I mean, you’re _right_ – even if I’m going to miss the sex.” _Because in bed is, like, the one place Rachel_ isn’t _selfish._ “But… I really do want to make things work with Dana. I’ve been a little bit in love with her for years, and I’m tired of how one of us gets cold feet every time things start getting serious.”

“Glad to hear it. ’Cause if I’m giving up a couple of awesome lovers, it damn well better be for a good cause.”

“What _are_ you going to do? Everyone else in the house is coupled up now.”

Rachel shifts from foot to foot, nervous in a way I haven’t really seen her before. “Yeah, about that. I was thinking that maybe I should give up on fucking around altogether. I know Chloe would appreciate it, even if she’s never asked me to stop. And Max…”

There’s something in her eyes, and suddenly it clicks. “You’ve got a crush on your girlfriend’s other girlfriend.”

“Hella. It’s been brewing for a long time, but hit me really hard the last few days; what with us all being cooped up together, and Kate and Brooke having new girlfriends, and… I think last night was me trying to run from it, when maybe I should be running _to_ it. I know that Max and I had that whole frenemy vibe going on when we first got together with Chloe, but we moved past it years ago. I guess we got stuck in the mindset that, just because we’re both dating her, doesn’t mean there’s anything between us. Except… there is, and I want to find out what.”

“Maybe you should be spending the night with Max – just Max – instead of me.”

“Yeah; not sure what Chloe will make of it, though.”

“She’ll probably pout a lot when you tell her that, no, she can’t watch; but she’ll get over it when you add, ‘this time.’”

Rachel laughs. “That sounds like my Chloe.”

“Seriously, you should go for it. I honestly think you’ll make a happy thruple. Happier than y’all are now, at any rate.”

“Yeah, but… what if Max doesn’t want that?”

“ _Please_ ,” I say dismissively, “I’ve seen the way she looks at you.”

“Really?” There’s an endearingly hopeful look on her face.

“Yes, really. Now, go rock our freckle’s world.”

Rachel laughs as she gets up to leave. “I’ll do my best.”

I finally have a reason to go back to Dana’s room when dinner time rolls around, and I go up with a tray laden down with fresh, soft, bread, a couple of bowls, and a steaming tureen. “Freshly made chicken soup,” I tell her, “good for all that ails you.”

She laughs. “I’m not sure it’s a cure, but it’ll certainly make me feel better. You really didn’t have to do this, though.”

“I wish I could take the credit, but dinner is Victoria’s handiwork.”

“Wait… what? _Vic_ made me soup?”

“Yup. I think she’s feeling guilty about her whole fake flu debacle now that one of us has actually got the real thing.”

“Still nice of her to do, though.”

“Maybe you should give her a call later to thank her.”

“Maybe I should.” She ducks her head for a moment. “Speaking of calls, did you talk to Rachel earlier?” I nod. “How d’you feel about us not having her as a fuckbuddy any more?”

“I think it’s for the best. I think it was one of the things getting in the way of what I really want.”

“What is it that you really want?” she asks, barely more than a whisper.

I take the plunge. “You.”

“Me too.” I feel like a weight has been lifted off my chest. “I’m tired of running scared every time we get too close, just because I’m terrified that if it does’t work out, we’ll fuck up our friendship.”

“That’s _not_ going to happen,” I tell her; I’m telling myself too. “Not if we don’t let it. We’re two strong, independent women. We _will_ make this work.”

She nods. “Yes, we will. So… once I’m done with this stupid virus, can I maybe take you out on a date?”

“Hell, yes! Although the ‘out’ part might be a problem.”

“That’s fine, we’ll just do… a candlelit dinner in the gazebo or something.” That actually sounds awesome – and super romantic. “I don’t care about the what or where, just the who.” She looks deep into my eyes; or, at least, as deeply as you can from six feet away. “I love you, Juliet.”

I takes all I have not to throw myself over there, tear off our masks, and kiss her senseless. “I love you too.”

In lieu of kissing, we’re stuck with a long, awkward silence.

“So, can I have some of that soup now?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, here we are at the end of another fic – although not the end of the story; I've already got a few hundred words of a one-shot prequel written, and it was always the plan to do a post-epidemic followup (although who knows when that's going to happen.)
> 
> It's also the end of an era. This is the last story in the [Echo Park](https://archiveofourown.org/series/658562) anthology that I've been working on for almost four years now (I finally got around to [adding a cover image](https://zorac.xyz/echo-park/)) and is what really got me into writing, so many thanks to all the people who've supported me with comments and kudos along the way. I certainly wasn't expecting this to (just) reach 200K words – and that's not counting the (mostly still ongoing) side series, which more than double the count!
> 
> Here's hoping that the next four years aren't quite as much of a dumpster fire (gee, I wonder what made me escape even further into imaginary worlds by writing stories about them?) as the last four. I'm not getting my hopes up, though…


End file.
